Published October 19, 2000
- Atlantic Highlands Herald
NOTE WORTHY
By Carol Barbieri
Joe Taino & The Blue Flames Get Ready to Set Red Bank "On Fire"
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If you missed his debut on the Red Bank scene last August, you can catch Joe Taino and the Blue Flames again at Danny’s Steakhouse this Friday night. When I first heard that Joe Taino was coming to Red Bank, I couldn’t believe my ears. I’ve been following this incredibly talented blues guitarist everywhere he goes. He was first pointed out to me a couple of years ago by a friend of mine, while we were at a guitar trade show in New York City. |
 Joe Taino |
"He’s the best guitarist around," my friend said to me. "No one can get the sound out of a guitar that he can."
After seeing Joe perform in clubs in North and South Jersey and all over New York, I can see what my friend means. There are many great guitarists out there, but Joe has a "sound" that is uniquely his own. Guitarists come to see him, just to watch him and try to figure out how he does it. I’ve seen many of them just shake their heads in amazement, after one of Joe’s solos, muttering to themselves, "I’m never going to be able to play like that."
But Joe is a veteran guitarist and has been doing what he does for a long time. Joe says that he became interested in music after watching the Beatles’ movie, A Hard Day’s Night, when he was nine years old and growing up in Puerto Rico. He got his first guitar when he was eleven and says that he started learning "everything he could get his hands on." His early influences were The Beatles, Elvis, The Monkeys, Cream, Jimmy Hendrix and Santana, to name a few.
"I got hooked on the blues, after hearing Eric Clapton’s Sleepy Time and Sitting on Top of the World, Joe says, "and from that point on I did nothing but play records and listen to English speaking radio stations, where they played rock and roll, jazz, rhythm and blues and occasionally blues by artists like B.B.King, Albert King, Freddie King, Etta James, T-Bone Walker and Taj Majal."
Then, when Joe was thirteen years old, his father bought him his first electric guitar. At that point, he started playing in a band called, "The Flower Generation." By the time he was only sixteen years old, Joe had formed his own band and began playing professional gigs at the USO Naval Stations all over the island of Puerto Rico and at rock clubs in San Juan.
While playing rock with his band, "Pelican in Flight," Joe shared stages with artists like, U.K., Judas Priest, Kansas, Billy Idol, Cindy Lauper, Peter Frampton, Pat Travers, Rick Derringer, Ronnie Montrose, Cheap Trick and many others.
But Joe says, "Rock isn’t what I wanted to do. So I moved to Florida and tried to establish myself as a blues musician."
Joe says, "As a Puerto Rican, it’s difficult to be recognized as a blues man."
But, he was doing well enough in the early 1980’s to open shows for artists like, The Allman Brothers, Johnny Winter, John Mayall, and Jaco Pastorius, with whom he spent the few months before Jaco’s death "hanging out, jamming and sharing ideas."
After Jaco died, Joe decided to move to New York City, where he had lived briefly in 1976. He’s now plays continuously in the tri-state area and has been touring Europe, Japan, Brazil and The Caribbean. He is currently promoting his new CD, Blues With An Accent, which was just released.
 George Morales |
Joe always seems to attract the most talented musicians around. He’s been playing with drummer, George Morales, for many years. Originally from Harlem, George is veteran drummer whose roots stem from Latino percussion music. He then moved in the direction of rock and roll and R&B, and was influenced by people like Little Richard, James Brown, and The Beatles. His biggest influence, however, is Tito Puente, saying that he "gets a big nod" from him. When I asked George how he came to be interested in the blues, he said that Little Richard influenced him greatly. |
"Little Richard’s rock was blues," George told me.
George now resides in Manhattan and has been Joe’s steady drummer, accompanying him on all his international tours.
| Joe plays with several great bass players, one of whom you’ll hear on Friday night. His name is Pete Persechino. From Jersey City, but originally from Vermont, Pete is an accomplished player and adds a good, tight groove to Joe’s numerous solos. You can catch Pete at some of Joe’s blues jams, which he runs every Saturday afternoon at Scotland Yard in Hoboken. |  Pete Persechino |
I can’t adequately say, with words, what my ears would like to convey. You’ll just have to come down to see Joe and see what I mean.
Joe’s show starts at 9:00 in the bar at Danny’s Steakhouse, 11 Bridge Avenue, in Red Bank. Danny’s is also a great place to have dinner. For more information, please call Danny’s at (732) 741-6900. You can learn more at Joe’s website, www.zstarr.com/taino.
Joe’s discography includes, Unlimited, Chewin’ That Stuff, Hoodoo Man, Blues With An Accent, and Best of Joe Taino. CD’s are available for purchase at Joe’s shows, but you can also obtain a copy by writing to Joe at :
Joe Taino
1508 Burnet Ave., Lot 18
Union, NJ 07083